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ENHYPEN’s Jake has landed himself in the eye of a major storm as the situation continues to get murkier.
On August 27, a concerned fan asked ENHYPEN’s Jake if the the ongoing reports about his “girl hunting” controversy in Itaewon are true or not.
To which, Jake replied directly to this fan,
"It's not true. I wish you would believe me."
For the unversed, “girls hunting” in the aforementioned context means picking up girls as potential dates, to put it in a polite manner.
Fans are happy that ENHYPEN’s Jake has taken it upon himself to clear his name and respond to the allegations against him, especially when his agency BELIFT Lab’s response has not been a satisfactory one.
Not just that, ENHYPEN’s Jake even released a lengthy letter dedicated to ENGENEs stating that he loves and misses them and is grateful to them for their constant support.
ENHYPEN’s Jake backed by fans in Itaewon “girls hunting” controversy
ENHYPEN’s fans continue to band together and support member Jake amidst the ensuing controversy against him.
On August 22, an anonymous netizen created a post on an online community forum titled "ENHYPEN's Jake went around asking a woman for a cigarette lighter in Itaewon."
The series of photos allegedly showed “ENHYPEN’s Jake” and an acquaintance interacting with several women in Itaewon, a popular area in Seoul, asking for cigarette lighters.
The man, who the anonymous netizen claims to identify as “ENHYPEN’s Jake” was seen wearing a plaid green shirt, black athleisure trousers, a black cap and a mask.
The netizen alleged that Jake had a cigarette on his lips as he was seen asking a mysterious woman for a lighter.
The post soon went viral on online forums with netizens alleging that ENHYPEN’s Jake was basically flirting with women on the streets of Itaewon and asking for a lighter was a mere excuse to get close to the women.
Ever since the controversy went viral, ENHYPEN’s Jake continues to plead his innocence as ENGENEs band together to protect him from trolling and hateful messages.
“Jake, we love you”, fans continue to reiterate their love and belief in the member.
Fans aren’t exactly happy with BELIFT LAB’s response and requested them to do better.
However, fans are optimistic that Jake will come out of this situation and emerge as a stronger and wiser person.
ENHYPEN’s agency BELIFT LAB finally responds to the allegations against Jake
The agency released a lengthy and detailed statement regarding the recent events stating that they are taking stern measures and continuing with legal proceedings against anonymous netizens and trolls who continue to defame ENHYPEN members through groundless posts, insults and invading members’ privacy.
They assured fans that they are working 24/7 throughout the year, collecting evidence to protect the members’ image and privacy.
They also revealed that they are in touch with the police and are continuously monitoring the situation.
They assured that the perpetrators will be punished in the harshest manner in the confines of the law and they will not show any leniency to those who try to tarnish the members’ reputation.
They further requested fans to submit any malicious posts and comments to the official BELIFT LAB email hotline for legal affairs ([email protected]).
While fans were happy that the BELIFT LAB responded, many felt that the official statement came a little too late and still did not explicitly defend ENHYPEN’s Jake and his reputation continues to remain tarnished.
ENGENEs feel the agency should buckle up and take swift action considering this isn’t the first time the idol’s personal space and reputation has been encroached upon.
During KCON 2022’s hi-touch event, two women misbehaved with ENHYPEN’s Jake, putting him in a difficult spot.
The older woman in question tried to set up the singer with her daughter, asking him to marry her. The idol was visibly nervous and uncomfortable and fans were angry, demanding immediate action against the two women.
Fans believe BELIFT LAB must release a statement explicitly clarifying that the man in the viral post is not Jake and is not involved in the “girls hunting” controversy in any way.
In other news, ENHYPEN’s third mini-album MANIFESTO: DAY 1 ranked at number 45 on Billboard 200 in its third week of release. They also ranked 28th on the Billboard Hot 100 in their 11th week.
